The company closes the 2020 financial year with 479.1 million euros of consolidated turnover, 10% lower than the previous year, and increases its workforce by more than 1%, to 1,250 people, 90% with permanent contracts.
After-tax profit falls by 30% to 52.9 million, but investment is at 68 million euros.
It highlights a change in trend in the mix of sales channels in which the hospitality channel lost strength with an 18% decrease, and there was an increase of 44% in the food channel compared to the previous year.
Corporación Hijos de Rivera decided to avoid employment measures in all its businesses from the beginning of the pandemic, focused on the health and social emergency and allocated aid to its customers and distributors.
The company’s activity accounts for 0.7% of Galician GDP, contributes 1.29 billion euros to Spanish GDP and its business generates more than 7,200 jobs in Galicia and 25,300 in Spain.
Ignacio Rivera, CEO of Corporación Hijos de Rivera, this morning resumed his traditional meeting with the media, on this occasion semi face to face, due to the necessary safety measures. The company’s top executive has had the opportunity to share the results of the business in 2020, clearly marked by one of the most complicated junctures in over one hundred years of history, as well as reflections on the current circumstances and challenges facing the company in the short and medium term.
Corporación Hijos de Rivera’s turnover reached 479.1 million euros in 2020, 10% lower than the previous year, when it was 532.3 million euros. However, the company invested 68.3 million euros in 2020 and increased its workforce by 1.1%, reaching a workforce of 1,250 people, 90% with a permanent contract.
Beer production decreased by 1.4% (341 million litres compared to 345.7 in 2019) and there was a steeper drop in sales of mineral water of -18% (162 million litres compared to 198 2019) affecting the group’s three springs, Cabreiroá as well as Agua de Cuevas and Fontarel.
This decrease in sales was accompanied by a change in trend in the mix of sales channels in which the on-trade channel lost strength with a decrease of 18%, and there was an increase of 44% of the off-trade channel compared to the previous year.
All of the company’s businesses have suffered throughout 2020 with marked declines in both beer (-22%), and water (-48%) and even the MEGA museum itself (-95%). In any case, the biggest blow has been in the distribution businesses (-449%) and hospitality (-286%) who have suffered especially due to restrictions over the past year. As a result, the company’s profits have fallen by almost 30% to 52.9 million euros after tax.
Despite the difficulties, Corporación Hijos de Rivera already decided at the beginning of the pandemic to not apply for employment measures (ERTEs) for its workforce and has since developed a large number of initiatives both to support its sector and to care for the health and social emergency.
Today the company is made up of a total of 31 companies in 8 countries and its products reach over 60 markets on all continents.
Socio-economic impact
The socio-economic impact study prepared by international consultancy Steward Redqueen has also been presented, which quantifies via a standard model the impact of the company’s activity throughout the value chain.
This study notes that more than 25,300 jobs throughout Spain are somehow linked to the activity of Hijos de Rivera, which means that for each direct post, 23 related jobs are generated. It adds that Hijos de Rivera contributed a total of 1.29 billion euros to Spanish GDP in 2020.
In the case of Galicia, the company’s activity accounts for 0.7% of Galician GDP and a total of 7,200 jobs in the region are somehow related to the company.
